Vermillion was right. All ping pong needs is more exposure and then it's sure to become wildly popular.

I think the best way to accomplish this would be to get some major hip-hop & rap stars to play ping pong in their videos. These guys are legendary trend-setters and if people see them playing ping pong, it's going to catch on.

Just imagine a video with Lil' Wayne playing ping pong vs. Kanye? It would be OFF DA HOOK for sure. Probably would be #1 on TRL for who knows how many weeks.

Then, as a follow-up, in his next video Jay-Z could be shown playing ping pong vs. Ludacris. Both of them would be playing with totally bling'ed out ping pong paddles. It would be INSANE!

To top it all off, there could be a video that featured the SNOOPER BOWL of Ping Pong -- THIS IS HOW WE DO. Of course, Snoop Dogg would be the favored player but he'd be matched up against his old friend Dr. Dre, so who knows what could happen. INSTANT recognition and street cred for ping pong is a given, no matter who wins. Footlocker would probably start selling ping pong paddles the next day.

And finally, Diddy could host a reality show on MTV called Making the Team - Ping Pong Battles. The contestants would have to play ping pong matches against each other and rap AT THE SAME TIME! It would probably revolutionize not just ping pong but probably hip-hop & rap as well.

So if anyone has any connections at MTV or any of the major record labels, feel free to suggest this to them. I'd appreciate it if you let them know it was my idea so I could get some of the royalty fees.

SoBad

08-19-2008, 01:33 AM

vermzap is always right, except when he gets angry and starts dissing me...

CanadianChic

08-19-2008, 03:27 AM

Ping pong? Please! Can we not merge these ponger threads into one? While we're at it, is there any way to merge all the Olympic threads into one as well? Ping pong is a game...not a sport. IMHO.

Ignorant Genius

08-19-2008, 06:39 AM

Ping pong? Please! Can we not merge these ponger threads into one? While we're at it, is there any way to merge all the Olympic threads into one as well? Ping pong is a game...not a sport. IMHO.

Ping pong deserves as many threads as it takes for it to get more exposure and respect as a sport.

Ignorant Genius

08-19-2008, 07:09 AM

vermzap is always right, except when he gets angry and starts dissing me...

You let him get away with that?

puck1230

08-19-2008, 07:23 AM

I've played both sports, tennis at a varsity HS level, and table tennis at the college level. Yes, there are different techniques required, but foundationally, the footwork, hand eye coordination, reaction time are necessarily similar. Arguably, table tennis is more complex--the element of spin plays a much bigger factor, enhancing the depth of possible strokes and playing styles.

In both sports, there are basement players or recreational players. Then you have intermediate players who play tournaments and leagues. And at the very top there are pros, who train day after day with equally strenuous routines albeit table tennis training doesn't break down the joints as quickly as tennis training.

With regards to olympics, yeah, there are some questionable events, but at the highest level we should pay tribute to them all. I just find it odd that on this particular message board, we would find our sister sport lacking in some sport 'requirement' when there are so many commonalities. I suggest youtubing "wang hao timo boll" and taking a look at those videos. If you played the sports, you'd realize that that some of those matches are just as epic as Nadal-Fed Wimby 2007 (2008 was in a class of its own)

dave333

08-19-2008, 10:10 AM

Ping pong is a great sport. Have you seen pro ping pong? It's insane how good they are.

Ignorant Genius

08-19-2008, 11:39 AM

Ping pong is a great sport. Have you seen pro ping pong? It's insane how good they are.

Yes, the pro players are crazy good. They just need more exposure. If the rap & hip-hop community got behind the sport, it would really take off.

diredesire

08-19-2008, 12:17 PM

Ping pong? Please! Can we not merge these ponger threads into one? While we're at it, is there any way to merge all the Olympic threads into one as well? Ping pong is a game...not a sport. IMHO.

Sorry CC, I gotta disagree :twisted:

I think this is in the same realm as where others will walk by a tennis court and see a beginner standing in the same spot trying to dink a ball over the net.

Real ping pong is a great work out, and I would definitely classify it as sport.

Ignorant Genius

08-19-2008, 02:18 PM

Sorry CC, I gotta disagree :twisted:

I think this is in the same realm as where others will walk by a tennis court and see a beginner standing in the same spot trying to dink a ball over the net.

Real ping pong is a great work out, and I would definitely classify it as sport.

Just how good of a workout is it? How long does a very competitive (olympic or pro-level) match typically last?

An hour? More?

Leelord337

08-19-2008, 02:33 PM

isn't it supposed to be called table tennis? i actually have a table tennis table in my room and have enough room in it for full table action, hehe. have a butterfly senshu paddle that i use and some stiga professional paddles, a woddie, an oversized paddle. and only use 3 star balls. its a very fun game that anybody can learn to play. my grandma actually beat me and (she's 70something) the first time i got a table like 5 years ago...she had played in college. it is so much fun to play hitting the angles, spins, etc...i feel like i wanna play now talking about it so much. :)

diredesire

08-19-2008, 02:55 PM

Just how good of a workout is it? How long does a very competitive (olympic or pro-level) match typically last?

An hour? More?

I'm not sure on the pro-level scoring format. I'm not a high-level competitive player, but I can assure you that you can work up a killer sweat, and your heart rate will get going pretty good. I'd even wager to say if you can keep a rally going, handle spin, and anticipate heavy angle, you might be more tired than say... a competitive doubles match. (tennis)

(The dead time I feel is much shorter compared to tennis).

TokyopunK

08-19-2008, 03:00 PM

I'm sure that if Enrique Iglesias can't spread Ping Pong fever, then NO ONE CAN!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcZVpaVn-eM

Leelord337

08-19-2008, 03:01 PM

^^haha, nearly 15 million views and i've never seen it before.

tears_of_awesom

08-19-2008, 03:05 PM

Ping pong? Please! Can we not merge these ponger threads into one? While we're at it, is there any way to merge all the Olympic threads into one as well? Ping pong is a game...not a sport. IMHO.

correction, ping pong is a game. Table Tennis is a sport. Fixed that for you!!

Leelord337

08-19-2008, 03:07 PM

ping pong is what n00bs call table tennis

Ignorant Genius

08-19-2008, 03:27 PM

ping pong is what n00bs call table tennis

Don't hate on the n00bs. They're the next wave of table tennis players. Embrace them and teach them the game. It's all about grassroots development.

puck1230

08-19-2008, 09:31 PM

Thanks Tears of Awesome, I can agree with your statement.

Just an quick response to Ignorant Genius's question above, some pro matches last up to 50 minutes in a best of 7 format, first to 11. The difference is that many matches will occur on the same day. A player can end up playing 2 or 3 matches. Also, downtime between points is reduced. As soon as you pick up the ball and get to the table, you should start serving, no 21 bounces like Djokovic. The length of a match is very dependent on the types of players playing, a defensive player vs an offensive player could lead to extremely long points. 2 explosive offensive players could wind up finishing every point within two strokes.

Yep, n00bs are the future. Seriously, when a bunch of hipsters walk into a chinatown table tennis club and play for 2 hours, and bring their friends....sometimes that's all it takes for something to explode. It only has to get popular with a few important people. If tt catches on with a crowd, any crowd, it can grow fast. Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell describes this in detail. So to the OPs point, yes it could be Kanye, or Diddy, or some dude that takes alot of pictures of hot girls playing ping pong in a basement. All of sudden everyone goes to K-mart and buys their own paddle and pubs open tables up to the public...etc etc.

From a hobby standpoint, table tennis can explode. However I don't think it can ever reach the popularity of say Basketball or Football in America, or even Tennis.

1. Even if the hobby sport is popular, the "sport" of table tennis is not well understood by the public.
2. Televised Table Tennis does not yield spectacular viewing experiences. Only in certain instances does it really get interesting. For the most part, matches are boring.

Point 1 and 2 combine to an apathetic viewership --> reduced revenue generated by adspace. For network execs, there's no $$ in it, so it won't take off, and they are a necessary component for the sport to become truly recognized in this country.

So that's my point of view. Feel free to disagree, but after seeing our best attempts (killerspin) to really go mainstream, I kind of feel jaded.

persondudething

08-19-2008, 09:38 PM

ok dont flame but i think top tier table tennis is more intense than normal tennis. the game moves so much faster

quest01

08-19-2008, 09:44 PM

I think Ping Pong is an exciting and entertaining sport which should always remain an Olympic event. Personally it's one of the hardest sports I ever played in my life, even surpassing Tennis in terms of physical fitness and strength. As I said in another thread, I burn more calories playing ping pong then running on a treadmill full blast.

I think Ping Pong could also improve it's marking appeal by having Federer vs Nadal play each other. This years US Open, place a ping pong table on center court and have Federer and Nadal battle each other in a Ping Pong match for the ages. I think that would be great with a packed crowd on center court (US Open-night match) and seeing these two titans battle each other out for Ping Pong supremacy.

xtremerunnerars

08-19-2008, 10:17 PM

somehow i see fed winning that one. So much of rafa's spin comes from his arm motion that I think he'd be worse than fed in table tennis. agassi would probably be amazing though.

Leelord337

08-19-2008, 11:03 PM

daydenko or stepanek would too...roddick would be awful, lol

SoBad

08-20-2008, 05:06 AM

You let him get away with that?

I use his unprovoked attacks to offset my karmic debt to him, so it's all going to work out in the end. Regarding the scoring, my understanding is that basic unit ("set") consists of first to either 11 or 21 points. I cannot watch Olympics now, but I would guess a pro match consists of a number of 11-point units that results in match duration that is shorter yet somewhat comparable to pro tennis matches.

tears_of_awesom

08-20-2008, 09:25 AM

its 11 points...

the 21 point system went away years ago in the 90's...competitions do not use that format anymore...

TheNatural

08-20-2008, 09:59 AM

Brazilian cheer girls standing around the table in a circle to cheer every point. That will get Ping pong exposure.

Ignorant Genius

08-20-2008, 06:18 PM

Brazilian cheer girls standing around the table in a circle to cheer every point. That will get Ping pong exposure.

Maybe they could put the matches in a cage like UFC. That might hype it up a little bit. Or maybe a "Street Pong" tourney where they play outdoors in various famous city parks.

FuriousYellow

08-21-2008, 09:49 AM

If there were more women like Biba Golic or Naomi Yotsumoto playing I bet more people would watch.

Honestly, I'd rather watch table tennis then the endless stream of poker tournaments that have saturated sports networks for the past few years. At least you can tell if those players are alive or dead.

tears_of_awesom

08-21-2008, 12:07 PM

I think table tennis is fine the way it is as far as the media exposure is concerned. The united states was doing that whole killerspin tournament thing, but it looked like a big circus act and 99% of the players were international big named players/champions from other countries. It was entertaining none the less...i guess. Im sure table tennis gets alot of exposure just not in north america. I know in germany that there are concrete tables in many of the parks.

On another note, even if it was big here in the US, there would be absolutely no way that we could compete with our eastern friends, ever! I wont go so far as to say that we lack the talent as that would not be true, but I do believe that we as a society lack the discipline to go through the training, time, and work like they do to unleash our potential, especially compared to the chinese and koreans. Also, I dont think that the coaches here have the experience to breed a world champion although it does take two to tango. We just like others have to import players from other countries and pretty much get the left over crap (in their country) that would still blow the doors off any native US player.